Fodder-mealing machine.



I. L. EDSALL &: E. T. MOLZAHN.

FODDBR MEALING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 16, 1912.-

1 ,O97,919, Patented May 26, 1914.

[NV [Wales Arm uniform fineness by breaking,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IRVING- LEROY EDSALL AND EDWARD THEODORE MOLZAHN, 0F SUPERIOR,

. NEBRASKA.

FODDER-MEALING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 26, 1914.

Application filed November 16, 1912. Serial No. 731,817.

Our present invention relates to machines whereby fodder, such as alfalfa, hay, straw, ensilage, all kinds of grasses, corn fodder with or without corn attached, and such grains as oats, wheat, rye, barley and speltz, may be mealed or reduced to a substantially mealing and and collected when it is. of

riddling action,

find its way to suitable such fineness as to collecting means.

The principal objects of our invention are to provide a machine of the character described, having a simplified construction, maximum strength of parts and large capacity, a machine that will fulfil itspur pose, and one which is compact and capable of handling the toughest fodder or other material of the character set forth.

Other objects of our invention will appear in the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, and in which drawing: the figure shown is a View in central vertical longitudinal section through portions of the machine embodying our invention.

In reducing our invention to practice, we prefer to inclose moving elements of a machine in a suitable housing 8, having an ingress way 9 for raw material, at one end thereof. lVithin said housing, and adjacent the ingress way thereof, a breaker means, designated generally by A, is provided to receive the raw material. This breaker means preferably comprises a cylinder 10 revolubly carried by shaft 11, to move, when in operation, in the direction indicated by an arrow. This cylinder carries teeth 12, which may be of any suitable type, but are preferably of a well known diamond edge type. Concaves 13, for coaction with the cylinder 10, carry teeth 1 1 in staggered relation to the teeth of said cylinder. As the material is fed through way 9, it is caught up by the teeth 12 of cylinder 10, and broken transversally, by its engagement with the teeth 1 1 of the concaves. With its receiving end adjacent the egress end of breaker A, we provide an agitating or shaking riddle sieve 15, of any suitable construction, this riddle sieve having meshes of a size to permit the material reduced to the desired fineness by breaker A, to pass through, by gravity, the sieve being inclined downwardly from its receiving end so that the coarse material travels over the meshes by action of the sieve, and the force of gravity. The sieve 15 may be actuated in any suitable manner. This riddle sieve serves as suitable means for separating the coarse material acted upon by breaker A, from that ofpredetermined fineness.

In order that most of the material passing through breaker A may be brought into operative relation to sieve 15, a swinging deflector 16 is disposed adjacent the egress end of said breaker which directs the material acted upon to be disposed for immediate action by said sieve as clearly shown in the drawing; Such fine material as drops by gravity from breaker A, and sieve 15, is conveyed to a collector trough 17 by an endless carrier 18, trained about shafts 19, this carrier having movement imparted thereto as indicated by an arrow, and has its top run disposed under the breaker A and sieve 15, with its egress end above collector trough 17.

The delivery end of sieve 15 is disposed to feed the material to be acted upon, to a mealing means B which comprises elements providing a grating action, which not only breaks the fibers of the material transversally, but if the component parts of the material are of considerable girth, as in the event of corn-stalks, this mealing meairs shreds the pieces longitudinally, and in this respect is materially different in its operation from the action of a breaker, such as is disclosed at A. This mealing means preferably comprises a halved drum cylinder 20, including segments 21 secured about a shaft 22, as by blocks 23 and bolts 24. The segments 21 carry peripherally serrated plates 25. The shaft 22 may be rotated so as to move the cylinderQO as'indicated by an arrow in the drawing. The mealing means further comprises concaves 29 to confine the material acted upon, to a path of movement in close proximity to the serrated cylinder, which are preferably provided with teeth 80, similar to, and disposed in staggered relation to those carried by cylinder 20. By

this construction the material is not only broken transversally, but shredded by the grating action of the teeth.

The mealing means B delivers to a riddle sieve 31, which may be constructed substantially as is sieve 15, and to serve a like purpose, in so far as it permits material, operated upon by mealing means B, and of the desired fineness, to pass through the meshes of the sieve, by gravity, and to forward the coarse material for return, to be reacted upon as will be hereinafter set forth. Such material as passes through the sieve 31 is conveyed to trough 17, as by dropping upon the upper run of an endless carrier 3:2, trained about shafts 33, and wiich may be, in every respect, similar to carrier 18, except that its direction of move ment is in a counter-direction, as indicated by an arrow. A swinging deflector 34: may be provided in connection with mealing means B and sieve 31, serving a like purpose as deflector 16.

It is to be understood that the riddle sieves agitate the material, practically disintegrating the bunches of fibrous material, so that such as finally reaches the egress end of sieve 31 is of such coarseness as not to be capable of passing through the sieve, and hence must be reacted upon. lVith this end in view, we provide means for conveying material from the egress end of sieve 31 back to the mealing means B, such conveying means being designated generally by C. This means preferably comprises a trough 35 to which sieve 31 delivers material; a spiral conveyer 36 in said trough, moving material transversally of the housing and delii ering the same to an elevator 37. The elevator 37 delivers the material to a guide 38, the lower end of which isin close proximity to the cylinder 20 of mealing means B, and above the same, so that the material can pass between the cylinder and concaves 29.

The delivery end of guide 38 is in close proximity to the delivery end of sieve l5, and adjacent such delivery ends, we provide an agitator or beater 39, revoluble with a shaft 40, which serves the dual purpose of agitating or practically disintegrating the bunches of material conveyed by both of said elements.

A suitable receiver, not shown, into which the mealed material, or that of the desired fineness, is ultimately conveyed, as by means designated generally by D may be provided. This conveyer means D preferably comprises a spiral conveyer 4:2 delivering material frOm the trough 17 into which dips the buckets of the elevator means D.

The operation of the machine is as f0llows: As disclosed in the drawing, raw material of practically any length is fed to breaker A, to be acted upon as hereinbefore described. As the cylinder 10 rotates, the broken material is flung toward deflector 16 which causes the same to follow closely the upper surface of the agitated sieve 15. Material passing through sieve 15 is deposited upon the upper run of conveyer 18, which, moving as it does, delivers the same to trough 17. Such coarse material as cannot pass through the meshes of sieve 15 is delivered to mealing means B, being loosened by agitator 39, and in this mealing means is further broken and shredded, as hereinbefore described. Material acted upon in mealing means B is flung toward deflector 34; which causes it to be disposed in opera tive relation to sieve 31 which again separates the material of the desired fineness, from the coarse material. Such material as passes through screen 31 is. deposited upon the endless carrier 32, which ultimately delivers the same to trough 17. The coarse material conveyed along the upper surface of screen 31 is delivered to conveying means 0 which returns it to be reacted upon by mealin means B, it being first agitated or disintegrated by beater 39. The material which is deposited in trough 17 is conveyed by elevator means D to a point of deposition.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of our invention; but,

we claim:

In a mealing machine of the character described, the combination of a breaking means, means for separating the coarse material acted upon thereby from that of predetermined fineness, mealing means to which said last mentioned means delivers the coarse material, means for separating the coarse material acted upon by said mealing means from that of predetermined fineness, mechanism for returning the coarse material to said mealing means adjacent the delivery of said second mentioned means, and an agitator adjacent the deliveries of said second mentioned means and last mentioned mechanism, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

IRVING LEROY EDSALIJ. EDWARD THEODORE MOLZAHN. Witnesses G. L. DAY, J. H. KnsrnrzsoN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

